Disposal of waste in hospitality is essential for maintaining a sanitary work environment, particularly near to food preparation areas. Known waste disposal units are typically square or cylindrical buckets or bins adapted to receive food scraps and waste. However, these waste disposal units are typically not suitable for being used as a knock box for used coffee grounds.
In recent years, more and more cafes and restaurants have started to produce coffee products using commercial coffee machines which require the use of a group handle (sometimes referred to as a portafilter). Typically a group handle receptacle is filled with ground coffee beans and then is brought into a mating relationship with the coffee machine to extract the espresso, commonly referred to as a coffee shot, from the ground coffee beans. The group handle style coffee machines can be used to impart varying desired flavour, texture or consistency to a coffee shot based on a customer's preference or based on the type of bean used to make the coffee. This is a particular necessity for bespoke coffee shops which have become more prevalent.
However, there are a number of problems associated with current methods of compacting coffee within a portafilter as well as the risk of repetitive strain injuries forming with respect to repeated use of a portafilter, particularly with current compaction methods.
Problems may arise when producing espresso shots if the compaction of the ground coffee to form the “puck” is not sufficient. Forming a well compacted and substantially even tamping level of the puck allows for an even distribution of water by the shower of the espresso machine. Further, for a barista to make a puck which is sufficient to produce a desirable espresso shot relies on the barista feeling the shot compaction as they apply pressure which is heavily experience dependant and also relies on skill which new baristas may struggle to feel with present compaction methods. If the level of the puck is uneven or sloped, the water disbursed over the puck will pool in relatively lower areas which may cause undesirable flavours to be produced and even overflow from the portafilter which can cause undesirable bitterness of the espresso shot as well as have the potential for a barista to burn themselves from the water overflow.
Further, firm compaction of the puck is essential otherwise there is a potential for a “mushy puck” to form which lifts the puck from the portafilter and produces a weak or bitter espresso shot to be produced. Firm compaction of the puck allows for an even distribution of the water across and through the puck allowing the coffee oils to be desirable extracted which produces a more palatable espresso coffee shot. To form an even and compact puck, the barista must apply sufficient force through a coffee tamper to compact the ground coffee. The tamping area for a barista is commonly the same surface used for a countertop in a café or restaurant, and most common countertops or bench heights are around 900 mm or higher from floor level.
The relationship of the height of the tamping counter and the height of the barista varies greatly and it particularly important as tamping on a counter, which is relatively too high or too low introduces other potential repetitive strain risks. More particularly, the ulnar nerve follows a path from the spine through the shoulder, around the elbow, and along the wrist to the hand. If the counter is too high, then with a straight wrist at the tamper handle, the barista's elbow will be bent and elevated, sometimes shoulder-high. In extreme situations, the barista may have the elbow acutely bent, above the shoulder. These are at-risk postures as the ulnar nerve is also routed through an anatomically small passage at the elbow (the cubital tunnel), and an elbow that is bent far out of the neutral position (relatively unbent elbow) creates a sharp corner in the routing of the tendons and the ulnar nerve. Stress in the bent elbow can cause irritation, inflammation, and swelling, with possible compression and entrapment of the ulnar nerve. Also, the tamping force is passed on to the shoulder, which is rotated into an at-risk posture, and onward to the barista's back, which is likely also twisted to compensate for an unbalanced stance. The consequences can be serious in a relatively small period of time.
Further to the above, each barista working within a café or restaurant is not generally the same height, a tamping surface used for tamping coffee may cause repetitive strain injuries due to the relative height of the bench with respect to the barista. Statistically, as the average height of an average male is between around 177 cm and the average height of a female is around 164 cm, dependant on geographical location, having a bench height of 900 mm (typically standard for bench heights) forces a barista to bend their arm to apply pressure to compact the puck. As the barista bends their arm they apply only a fraction of their potential compaction force with respect to a relatively straightened arm and unskilled or training baristas will have difficulty in compacting the pack and maintaining an even puck level. Further, a barista bending their arm, which is often hundreds of times per day for bespoke coffee shops or cafes, are likely to develop a repetitive strain injury (RSI) from repeated compactions of coffee, and the rate and speed in which tamping needs to occur, due to bending their arm and applying a pressure exerted from in a direction perpendicular relative to their elbow. This strain injury is often referred to in the industry as “barista elbow”.
In addition to the above, used coffee grounds are typically required to be disposed into a receptacle which is exclusively for coffee grounds. This is due to the fact that the group handle is required to be reused without being washed between each coffee shot produced. Therefore, a regular waste receptacle, such as a bin, is not suitable for coffee grounds to be disposed in directly from a group handle, as the barista must ‘knock’ the group handle on the disposal unit to loosen and remove the used coffee grounds in the portafilter. As such, a knock box (also referred to as a “knockbox”, “bash bin” or “coffee column”) can found in nearly all cafes, restaurants or any other location where coffee is consumed. Knock boxes generally comprise a receptacle and a cylindrical bar which the group handle can be knocked or impact to remove the coffee grounds from the portafilter. The knocking bar of the knock boxes are traditionally cylindrical as this allows coffee to easy fall from the bar and into the receptacle.
Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.